Skeleton Fall
by MoonPrincess623
Summary: I thought I was going to die. The Skeleton invaded her territory, but maybe it's more than it seems. Actions of the past will haunt Renella's future. Is it condeming when it leads to something they want? halloween fic
1. Chapter 1

**~~~~~THIS HAS BEEN EDITED AND HAS BEEN ADDED TO!~~~~~**

**DISCLAIMER**: I do not own Naruto or it's characters. Like always, why do you guys have to rub it in?

**SUMMERY**: I thought I was going to die. "No thanks to you, Mr. Startler, I fell from said tree. I was trying to get that stupid skeleton down if you must know." He was gone.

**MOON SAYS**: First try at a Halloween fic! My beta/cohort (ZEN) and I have talked this will turn into a 4shot fic. Hopefully after it's edit, it is better.

**PAIRING**: Until next chapter, it's a mystery!

**WORDS**: 1, 662

**PAGES**: 4

ENJOY!

**Skeleton Fall**

Tonight was dark, cold, and damp as I looked at the giant tree above me. My body leaned against its comforting trunk, as I sighed. God knew I needed all the comforting I could get, that was why I was here after all.

It was still there, that crappy yet at the same time creepy skeleton body hanging up in the tree. No matter how much I hate or dislike it, it pops back up in the same place—in _my, _yes, _my _tree—every time October rolls around.

The skeleton takes away from my tree. Oh it was my beautiful, precious, reassuring, soothing, consoling, wonderful tree. And the skeleton was ruining it.

That tree was where I would come to think. It meant so much to me. When life became too much for me to handle, this was where I went. This tree was the only place where I could be myself, a place where I had no worries, no expectations, and mostly no stress. Nothing.

After my thoughts wandered from my situation and back into reality, I checked my cell phone for the time: it was almost midnight.

In less than ten minutes my entire life changed forever.

After I checked the time, ignored the fifty—no joke—text messages I had. I suddenly came to rash, sudden, impulsive decision that I never thought about at all. That freaking skeleton who was infringing upon my territory had to go. Either I was going to go or it was, and I was here first.

Once I decided that, I then stood up and brushed off my jeans while I turned around to face the tree…my tree.

With the branches low and spread out perfectly, not like my legs and arms, it took no time to climb it and get to the branch that the skeleton was hanging off of. A branch that was twelve feet off the ground, and if I fell the wrong way, I knew I could die.

That was something I wasn't going to think about. As long as I didn't fall, I was okay; of course I had to go and jinx myself.

"This isn't too hard," I muttered a little loudly as I reached for the rope that was wrapped around the skeleton's neck. This sucker was going to get unhooked from my tree once and for all. Then he would never plague me again.

"What are you doing?" a male voice called loudly to me.

In that moment—and many more, actually if truth be told—I wished I had overcome that deadly trait I knew that was going to get me killed someday…one of them. This trait was the one where if I'm totally immersed into something and if anyone talks to me I scream and jump. They don't even have to talk. Sometimes my dad would just stand there and I would turn and jump out of my skin in fright. My friend used to poke me and that was all it took to make me scream.

When I heard his voice—for it startled me really badly—I screamed and jumped, well kind of hopped, off the branch (just a tiny bit) and a second later gravity pulled me back down. As soon as I came back down I missed the branch and slid off toward the ground.

I snapped my eyes closed and flinched as I fell. My heart had stopped when he spoke and it still wasn't beating. That was another side effect of me being startled. My heart stopped beating, my brain shut off, and I thought I was going to die.

In the end, I didn't die, let alone hit the ground. The guy who startled me and made me jump in the first place caught my body as gravity pushed me to the ground.

I was shaking uncontrollably and trembling in his arms.

Those words may sound romantic (I know it does) but if you almost had a date with death, you wouldn't be thinking of it that way.

As my body shuddered and shivered, he sat down on the ground and held me close. The guy whispered gentle and relaxing words in my ear to calm me down. It took a little more than five minutes for me to get control over myself.

"Are you okay?" he asked softly, as if I was a fragile doll that would break if he spoke any louder.

All I could do was nod my head, it was shaky at best.

"What were you doing in the tree?" he said with curiosity filling his voice.

I turned to glare at him, but it didn't work out that way, I actually gave him more of a shocked look to be honest.

My startler turned rescuer was hot. He had long blonde hair that was halfway between his chin and his shoulders. He had the bluest eyes I had ever seen. I could feel the muscles in his arms, but I still wondered why he wasn't complaining, I mean I was a little chunky after all. Even with the strength that came with those muscles, combined with the extra weight the fall gave me, I had to weight more than he could handle. Yet, he never complained, he didn't let it show either.

His hair fell over his eyes and on impulse; I reached up and pushed it away.

He blinked as if he was confused or he didn't know what to make of my actions.

It broke the spell he held over me. I quickly—to save myself—diverted attention from touching him.

"No thanks to you, Mr. Startler, I fell from said tree. I was trying to get that stupid skeleton down if you must know." I told him with a little anger in my voice.

"Mr. Startler?" He laughed at my name for him, the nerve of him, how dare he?!

I glared up a storm at him, which just seem to amuse him even more. Maybe he was used to them by now, it wouldn't surprise me on bit. "You startled me, which made me fall...so why shouldn't I call you that?"

His eyes laughed at me again, even though the sound didn't escape from that gorgeous mouth…no I couldn't think about his mouth or his muscles or anything about him! Besides that, I was angry at him for almost killing me. Or almost leading to me death…something like that.

"Why did you want the skeleton down?" he said, bringing me out of thoughts I shouldn't have been having.

I paused as I thought about it. How was I supposed to tell a complete stranger that for three years—every Halloween—it seemed that I was competing with a skeleton for my safe zone?

I wanted to hit myself, how did that make sense, especially to a complete stranger? Again with all the nonsense, when was I ever going to learn that I shouldn't say such stupid stuff like that? What I needed to learn was logic, so that was what I started trying to word in my mind; hopefully it came out that way.

"This place is like…my special place. That skeleton is invading. I want to repel him like all those stories of ancient battles we hear. You know like Knights or Ninja defended their Villages." I told him as I turned my glare toward said invader, but I caught something in my parafoveal vision. It seemed something I said triggered recognition in his eyes, but I didn't dwell on it, it didn't seem to matter.

"If I'd known that, I wouldn't have put my skeleton there," he said, with a hint of teasing in his voice.

My eyes grew big. _He_ put it there? All this trouble I was having was caused by the hot guy who endangered and saved my life? What has the world come to?

"That blasted thing is yours?"

He nodded in reply.

My reply was cut off by my phone ringing. Three Days Grace was singing _I Hate Everything about You._

My startler whistled and I rolled my eyes at him. I didn't answer it, I knew who it was; it was the same person who left me the fifty text messages. No doubt wanting to say the same thing, there was a reason why I was ignoring them.

It rang again. I ignored my phone as I stood up. He moved fast, and helped me to my feet. As soon as I tried to stand, I knew I was a little shaky. With a little bit of walking, I knew I would be back to normal, or maybe standing would work.

"Thanks," I said, "For both the fall and the catch."

"Anytime." He grinned. To me it looked more like a smirk than a grin, but for the brief moment I looked and studied it, I concluded that it was a grin. A grin smirk, if there is such a thing. For some reason as I thought those words I knew if there was one, this guy would be the one who would invent it.

"Tomorrow?" I smirked when I saw the look of surprise filter on his face, but it was gone just as quick and was replaced by the upturn of his lips. It was almost a smirk, but not quite.

"Same time?" he asked after he nodded.

"As long as I don't have to fall again," I called over my shoulder as I sauntered away.

I heard him laughing along with me.

"Agreed, see you then."

I was halfway to my car when I heard his reply. I didn't look back until after I had gotten into my car and started it. When I did look back, just to get a glimpse of him just to see if he was watching me, but he wasn't, he was gone.

All that was there was my tree and the idiotic skeleton waving in the wind as I left.

_To be continued..._


	2. Chapter 2

**MOON SAYS:** I am so sorry that it has taken me this long to update. I had intended to finish this before Halloween, but it didn't turn out like that. IGNORE the fact that it isn't Halloween. This chapter is long....maybe I should split it into two chapters??? No, I think that this needs to stay a 4 shot. I don't have enough of those. What do you think, my readers?

**IMPORANT**: I KNOW this chapter is beyond confusing! BARE with me! My beta (ZEN) God bless her, even thought it was confusing. Which reminds me...we need to brainstorm more on this.

**WORDS: **8, 940

**PAGES: **18 (SUPER LONG compared to the 1st chapter!!)

ENJOY!

**Skeleton Fall **

Chapter 2

When I woke up the next morning I knew something was different. Thinking back it was that feeling that changed everything. I couldn't drop it or the dream I had the night before. Dreams were always a rarity for me, but when I had them BAMM! They were pretty damn intense.

There was one I had years ago of someone killing lots of people. Regret, anger, guilt, sympathy, and love were all rolled into one package. Those overwhelming emotions wrapped up together came with the dream.

A teenager was the one that killed everyone, and it hurt like hell for him to do it. I wondered for months how, during a dream, I felt someone's emotions. Also, why did his feelings hurt me? It was as if I knew and cared for him a great deal and whatever hurt him hurt me.

My mind slowly forgot about the dream, but it took a while. More like I buried it really, until that morning when a new dream popped up and scared the hell out of me.

The déjà vu feeling didn't help either. After that massacre dream I felt different toward two friends of mine: two brothers. Some of the feelings I felt in the dreams, I felt toward them. And they needed them too; their parents got killed in a mugging gone wrong a few days after my dream.

My parents had gone with them that night to the restaurant to celebrate something. They had promised us that they would tell us the good news when they got back. Somehow I knew it had to deal with us…I knew deep down inside of me that what they decided would rip us apart. Our friendship with the two brothers was deep and secure and I knew nothing could tear us apart…only this.

In a way, I'm glad they didn't come back, but just for that one reason. All the important reasons and everything else, I wish they did come back. I wouldn't ignore all the calls from a certain someone either. God knew I hated her, why couldn't she go get mugged and die? But I knew I shouldn't have thought that; even if my foster mother deserved it.

Our parents died when I was nine, Sasuke was eight and my sister and the Itachi were thirteen.

It's useless to think of what happened after that. How the older brother took care of the younger and my sister did the same—for me—for a while…until after she graduated. Then she was off exploring the world, every now and then the older would go with her, but he was always working, leaving me and the younger together to raise ourselves.

After my parents died, I couldn't live by myself. Just like Sasuke couldn't; our older siblings raised us. Unlike Sasuke, my older sister didn't stay with me. She stayed until she graduated; then she left. My sister left me with a bitch foster mother. She hated me because she hated my parents. And now every time I turn around she is calling me. And that is the reason why I almost never answer.

Four years later another of my dreams came. This one had another guy friend of mine whose dad, during the dream, was murdered. Two days after the dream my best friend's dad was reported dead. A business deal had gone wrong, leaving his three children all alone. Gaara, the youngest, was raised by his older sister and his older brother; even though they weren't that much older than him.

It seemed that our three families (Sasuke, Gaara and mine) weren't so different after all.

I had a few dreams since then, and always something bad happened; mostly a murder.

They were fifteen (all my friends) and I was sixteen when another dream came. I can't remember exactly what happened in this dream, and honestly I didn't want too, it was too painful to remember. In the dream two people, who I care for were hurting so terribly because a few gruesome murders took place, I saw three die. I almost cry thinking back on it now, because my friends were in so much pain.

Three days later I found out that three of our teachers died coming back from a bachelor party, one was the groom. The bride to be, who was another teacher of ours, was very pregnant.

This dream and the outcome were slightly different, unlike all the other times. In the dream I had two friends in so much pain, yet in reality there was only one. It took everything I had just to keep Shika together; I was beyond glad that was when Temari stepped up and helped him too. After she helped him through that they started going out. My other friends, who were affected by the teachers' deaths, weren't hurting as bad as the other one (not Shika) was in the dream. They also weren't _him, _but I didn't know who _him _was.

Confusion was my constant companion, until that dream too, was forgotten.

The night before this newest dream I almost died, and then later when I went to sleep I had my most recent dream. This dream I hated more than anything. I knew who it affected as soon as I woke up, because I had already had a dream about him before: my very first one.

As soon as I woke and connected the dreams, my hand snaked its way to my cell phone, which was on the nightstand. I pushed a random button on my Blackberry Curve to turn it on. I remembered I had turned it off last night when I got in. I didn't want to wake up in the middle of the night with the damn phone ringing.

Once it was on, I quickly pressed and held the button '1' down until the speed dial connected. My call was answered before I heard the second ring.

"What's wrong little one?"

I breathed out a sigh of relief. "I had another one."

A few seconds passed. "Obviously, since you're calling me, it was about me."

I nodded, he couldn't see me but I knew he knew I nodded. That was how close we were; we didn't have to be in the same room or see each other to know how the other reacted.

"What are you doing today?"

"Work," he answered.

"Don't," I said, the urgently was more than clear in my voice. "I can't lose you too."

A soft chuckle was my reply. "And I can't lose you either. You and little brother are all I have left since Nikka left."

I rolled my eyes, knowing he knew I did it. He always knew when I responded, whether it was a nod or gesture.

"She's coming back next year…unless she's coming for my birthday."

"Knowing her, she'd probably show up on Halloween and try to scare us."

I sighed. "Knowing her she would, but stop sidetracking! Promise me you won't go into work today, please."

He could never resist me and we both knew it. At another time I would laugh about it and make some stupid insulting teasing comment, but not now. Not knowing he was going to die.

"Where are you? I got a call from the bruja."

"I'm at panda-chan's house. I can't believe that hijo de punta!" I groaned as my eyes closed and my face mirrored the attitude my voice showed.

"Of course, why didn't you go to our house?"

I blinked. "Panda-chan's house is closer than yours. Plus, I wanted to be as far away from that punta as I could be. And both of you would have been interrogating me on where I had been; and why I was so late."

He started to protest but I cut him off. "We both know that you wouldn't ask, for a little while; but after I got settled in, you would have been grilling me. You are an Uchiha after all; you would have found some indirect way of making me tell you without actually saying anything. Plus, I know you can't stand her calling you."

He sighed. "I can't win with you can I?"

"Nope," I replied as I heard a knock on the door. "Promise me now! I have to go..."

"Okay, I promise I won't go into work today."

I let out sigh of relief. "Thanks Itachi, have a good boring day!"

"You're welcome," Itachi said as he hung up.

I turned my attention to the door. "It's unlocked, come in."

The door slowly opened and four blonde pigtails came into view. "You up and ready? School starts soon, you had better get going."

"I'll come down in a moment. Thanks Temari," I nodded.

She grinned, "I know how you can't get up in the morning. Who were you calling?"

"Itachi; had to make sure he didn't go to work today…" I trailed off; I didn't want to worry her.

Her grin fell as she tried to piece together what I was leaving out. It only took a few seconds, Temari was a smart girl, and she was dating Shika after all.

"You're wide awake….does that mean you had a dream?" her voice was soft as she asked.

I closed my eyes, I felt like shit, but I threw back the covers and stood up feet first. Socks covered my feet and a huge shirt covered my body like a dress that stopped halfway down my thighs.

Walking toward the door and following Temari downstairs without saying anything and having a gloomy atmosphere was not fun. We turned left out my door, walked past three more doors—one to the left and two to the right—and then there were stairs. We walked down them and took a right and went through the living room and right into the kitchen.

There were two guys sitting at the table. One was tall—maybe six foot?—and had brown hair and face paint on his face. I never asked what job he had that involved puppets and face make up because I never wanted to know. For some reason _Spawn_ popped into my head...

The other was a little taller than me at about 5'6 or so; I was still only five foot tall. He had red hair, blood red, that was a little longer than his ears. He had bangs that went over his eyes. To me, his hair was spiky _down_ not spiky up like most people. He also had a tattoo, in red, that went above his left eye that was in either Chinese or Japanese (still can't remember) that said 'Love' but most of the time it was covered by his bangs.

He wore all black, sometimes he wore red, but he was one of the hottest guys at school. Everyone thought he was emo though, but those that were close to him, knew he wasn't. Our peers at school didn't like the black makeup around his eyes. To me it made him look like a panda.

He looked up and our eyes met, my frown and unhappiness were replaced with their opposites.

"Hey love, how are you?" I asked as I walked over to him and sat down in the chair next to him.

"Fine, when did you get in?" he asked as he got back to his breakfast.

"A little after midnight," I replied before I started eating what Temari put in front of me. It looked great. She had made me a waffle and I love her so much, she had already put the syrup on it.

"You didn't wake me up to tell me you were here." My panda-chan said with a little hurt filling his voice. No one else could have heard it; maybe my guys. But mostly no one knew him as well as I did.

I stopped eating; now I felt horrible. Panda-chan always had trouble sleeping and when he knew I was nearby he slept better. How could I subject him to that when I could have prevented it?

Before I could say anything Temari glared at her younger brother. "Gaara! You didn't see her last night; you would have gotten mad at her if she woke you up instead of going straight to bed!"

For a second I knew Gaara debated with himself, and I knew that he was going to get mad at himself for even thinking of making me feel even worse. The red head knew how I looked last night; he had seen it many times.

I always came over here or to Sasuke's house if I had a fight with the punta. And always I would look like shit, just how I felt this morning no thanks to last night and that dream.

"Gaara don't even thinking about it!" I told him sternly as I took more bites of my waffle. "It's my fault; I should have told you I was here. I'm sorry. Temari it is okay. Last night wasn't so bad; it was my fault for answering the phone after what happened. I should have known that I wasn't ready to talk with her."

Gaara's eyes narrowed. "What happened before?"

I moved my plate out of the way and banged my head on the table. It kind of helped that I was almost through eating. No doubt I was going to lose my appetite after seeing the looks on their faces.

"Oh this is going to be good if she's banging her head on the table. What did you do this time girly?" Kankuro, Gaara's older brother, asked.

"I climbed a tree to get a skeleton out of it and this guy came and startled me." I shrugged as I moved my plate back and tried to continue eating. Okay, that wasn't too bad; more waffle for me!

Silence consumed the kitchen until Kankuro burst out laughing.

"Oh you are priceless. We can't let you out of our sights can we? No, you're just too clumsy; you can even trip over air." The second oldest sibling said as he tried to stop laughing. Even a hit to the back of the head from Temari didn't help.

"You didn't look scratched last night, just a little freaked out. Did you hit the ground? How high was the tree?" Temari asked as she played mother hen on me.

In reply I shook my head. "The idiot caught me."

That feeling took me over again. The déjà vu feeling…I closed my eyes and tried to concentrate but I couldn't remember anything, it just wouldn't come.

"Idiot…" I said again, thinking it would trigger something.

"Baka," Gaara said as he looked at me.

I nodded that word fit him better, but why did it? Why did I feel as if I called him that before? How come Gaara seemed to know what I was talking about? The answer wouldn't come to me so I just put it to the back of my mind.

"None of that matters right now, what matters is that Itachi better not go to work today or I'm going to figure out how to bring his ass back to life and kill him myself." I said as I finished my plate and got up. "I'm going to get dressed then we can go to school Panda-chan!"

I didn't have to turn around and look at Gaara's face. He didn't care that I called him that, he actually liked it, just not when someone else called him that. And Kankuro was making fun of him…again.

Getting dressed never took long with me, because I never really cared if I looked good or not. Most of the time I tried not to look good, but apparently though, it didn't work.

I came back downstairs with a purple low cut tank top, a short black skirt with purple fishnets and black boots that went up to my knees. Around my neck I had a cross choker, my hair was black with purple highlights.

Make up and I never have gone together, but today I just felt like putting it on. I put purple eyeliner with black mascara and my eye shadow had a mixture of both. My nails—which have been this way for a week—were black with purple tips.

"Whoa girl, when did you learn to do make up?" Kankuro asked as he looked me up and down. I knew it wasn't sexual or anything like that. He was like a brother to me, we grew up together.

I shrugged, "Sakura kidnapped me last week and demanded that I learn how to do make up. Ino coming over didn't help either. Sakura, apparently, doesn't like to just see nail polish on me."

"And you know how to do nail polish?" Kankuro countered.

I rolled my eyes at him. "Every time I need a new coat I go to one of the girls and they do my nails."

"One of the girls?" Kankuro asked with a grin on his face.

"Hinata, Sakura, Ino, Tenten or Temari, now do we have to finish twenty questions or can Panda-chan and I go to school?"

Gaara got up and grabbed his book bag; which was sitting in the door way and led me out of the house. When we got outside I walked straight to my car. I never cared about cars, but Sasuke and Itachi threatened that if I didn't get a cool car they would not talk to me anymore. So I have the newest BMW.

When people see my car that start asking me all kinds of questions a car lover would know. All I care about my car is that it gets me from point A to point B and back to point A.

Gaara had the newest Camero there was, this one wasn't even on the market yet. It was red with brown sand trickling down the sides. I had no idea what Temari or Kankuro drove, and I didn't care. Sasuke and Itachi had a BMW as well, but it was a different style then mine. Sasuke's was blue with white lightening on his; while Itachi was black with red flames; both had the Uchiha symbol on the license plates. Mine was dark purple with this weird symbol on it. The symbol was the infinity sign that was outlined in black, but filled in with gold. There was a squiggly line that went through it; the one that was right next to the one on a keyboard.

Once I took the keys out of my pocket, I unlocked the doors and got in the driver's seat. By then Gaara had thrown his book bag in the back with mine, and was in the passenger seat beside me.

School wasn't that far from any of my friends' houses. Gaara's was the closest actually.

Students had assigned parking: by grade. Even though—at the time—we weren't seniors we still had parking spaces in the senior section. Now that we are seniors, we still had those very same spots, though we never parked in the same spot twice. We had a total of twelve parking spaces, and even if they all weren't filled, no one parked in them.

There were two groups within our one group at school. There was my group and the other group. We were all very good friends, but at school we were one group split into two. It's weird I know, but it's hard to explain. We hung out together and everything, but it was sort of like a competition. One group against the other.

My group consisted of: me, Sasuke, Gaara and Shika. The other had Hinata, Kiba, Shino, Ino, Choji, Neji, Tenten, and Lee. Uneven I know, but that was the point.

Our separation started in our freshman year. I had gotten very pissed when we compared our entrance exam scores—which we got on the very first day of freshman year—and outright challenged the others. My score was lower than Neji's was, so I kicked him off my team. The others just fill into place.

Sakura was going out with Lee. Ino was going out with Choji. Hinata was going out with Kiba and Tenten was going out with Neji. Shino was going out with some girl that his parents hooked him up and wouldn't tell me who; so he was on the other team.

My team kicked the other team's asses on every challenge that popped up. Except that one, but that one was never mentioned again. Not only was it a fluke, but it was so horrifying that _everyone, _not just me, blocked out the memory.

In no time I parked, we grabbed our book bags and headed into school. Gaara and I took notice that everyone in our group was here. Good.

This school was annoying with the way it was designed. Five minutes was how long it took for Gaara and I to get to our group—who was located in the library—on the other side of the school.

I pushed open the doors rather hard, other times I would have winced at the sound of the doors smacking against the wall, but not today. I was in a bad mood.

All eyes turned to me—and Gaara by default; he was behind me—as I walked toward the group. We had a rather long table. On one side was my team, and the other team was on the other side of the table. Quickly I dropped my book bag and took a seat in the middle of the table. Gaara sat to my right with Sasuke and Shika to my left.

After I had taken my seat I folded my arms and laid my forehead on them.

"What's eating you girl?" Kiba asked curiously as he leaned forward. He poked my arm with his finger and pulled back real fast as if he was afraid I was going to bite him or something. Any other day I would have.

Slowly I raised my head until he could see my eyes; and I glared a glare worthy of an Uchiha glare. Those that saw the glare blinked.

"Besides the fact I almost died last night and years have been taken off my life? Nothing," I said sarcastically and lowered my head until they were in the position they were in before Kiba said anything.

I felt movement to my left; it seemed Sasuke had looked to Gaara for answers to my rather alarming statement.

I chuckled, like he was going to get something from Gaara. That butt should have known by now that they were too alike, neither talked.

"Na, na, now that the troublesome stuff has been gotten out of the way, what are we going to do about the masquerade that is scheduled for Halloween?" a lazy voice asked from my left.

"What? Why would we get involved in something stupid like that?" Kiba whined at the lazy kid who just broke the news.

"Because your girlfriend and the other girlfriends decided we were going to do it. Of course, they should have asked, because if they bothered to, I would have told them no. And if they still did it I would have kicked their asses like I'm about to do now." I said as I pushed my chair behind me.

Now I wasn't like the boys who would take and do what their girlfriends told them too. I would tell them no once and if they still went ahead and did what I said no to, I would hurt them or punish them in some way. Punishments were always worse than the beating.

"Now, now, Renella-chan," Hinata started. "We don't have to get violent."

I stopped and blinked. "We don't have to get violent?" my voice rang with disbelief and I watched many cringe from the sound and what they knew was coming. "I hate, no, _detest _dances or anything like it. When you volunteered us to do this that meant we _have_ to oversee it and we _have_ to go to the damn thing! Do we still not have to get violent?"

Tenten sighed. "We didn't volunteer you or your group, just ours."

I closed my eyes, put my elbows on the table and laid my face in my hands.

"You imbecile, when you volunteered your group, the one you told thought you meant our entire group. No one but us knows that our group is made up of two groups. So you _did _sign my group up and I hate all of you."

Our group left that topic and went to another one and another one after that; thanks to the smart Shika—who could avoid any fight when he wanted to. Ten minutes before we were supposed to be in class I just got up and left. I would not have lasted another minute if I had stayed without killing someone.

Killing someone…I had always said I wouldn't be able to handle it; but after what I had been through in the past twelve hours I was all for it.

Time passed quickly and it didn't feel like much time had passed before lunch came. Instead of going to eat in the lunch room I just stayed in the classroom. My guys knew something was wrong so they stayed with me; those idiots cared a lot more than they showed and I knew they were worried about me.

Something happened during that time, something happened after I went to sleep. How do I know this? I don't really, beyond the confused and weird looks my guys were giving me. Their faces showed more than confusion, it showed something like recognition. Whatever happened confused them and made them realize something important.

I just wished that I could have remembered what happened before everything went out of control. Maybe then the transition would have been smoother. Maybe then I wouldn't have felt those horrible emotions and hurt him with them; even if the ending turned out to be one of those kinds of endings.

After lunch was over, school was boring as always. Shika and I could sleep through class and still pass the tests with flying colors. Shika, along with my entire group were the top of our class. It was kind of funny, the three guys and I was number one…well tied for it really.

I am well aware that Shika was and is a lazy ass; but since I assigned him to my group he wouldn't dare not to work. The poor fool tried to do just that when we first started school; but after I was through with him he never tried that since.

School passed like it always did with me annoyed and bored as a puppy is hyper. When school ended an announcement about the masquerade came on the intercom.

"The brats in charge of the masquerade, report to the library. NOW."

Tsunade was the speaker and the principal of Konoha High School. I wasn't on good terms with her right now because she ignored me. Her and Jiraiya both; they could have taken me in just like they all promised. When I was seven I had known Tsunade, Orochimaru and the pervert for two years. By then we were really good friends. They were more of my parents then my real ones were. My parents went into the hospital because they were really sick three months after I had turned seven. They promised me that if anything happened to them I would come and live with them.

Well….Jiraiya was all for it, but something held Tsunade back and she refused. Jiraiya, her husband, would never go against her, didn't fight for me. So I didn't go live with them. Orochi couldn't adopt me because of past crimes—which were not his fault! He tried, for four years, he tried to adopt me. All he could do was give up because the court didn't care what really happened, just what was on the paper.

And now I'm stuck with a foster mom who hates me and all she wants to do is bitch at me.

I returned to the situation at hand because after Tsunade said that, my guys looked at me. They weren't sure if I was going to the meeting or not, and if I wasn't they sure as hell weren't going to go either. Of course I knew there was another reason.

They didn't want me to go because——of what happened in the class room. And because of the fact that they had told each other what happened to me last night. If I didn't go they wouldn't; my guys didn't want me out of their sights.

I turned the idea of going over and over in my head. Why should I go? I would only get upset and destroy something. That's what always happened…and Sakura ended up trying to beat me up. Keyword: trying.

See, sometimes my patience ran as deep as the Earth. Sometimes I had a short temper fuse and anything set me off. Usually afterschool meetings tending to be on the days that I had a short fuse, and I threw things; those things tended to break after I had thrown them.

My guys knew as soon as I got up I wasn't going to the meeting; but they didn't know what I was going to do next. I didn't know what I was going to do next. Or whether, what was going to happen to me next.

As I stood up something hit me, it was a feeling that shook me to the core. My entire body felt like it was on fire and I almost collapsed from the pain of it.

Sasuke knew something was wrong as soon as I stood up; he didn't like it. He really didn't like the way I almost doubled over. He softly called my name and when our eyes met, I knew he didn't like what he saw.

_Oh God no, not again. I couldn't handle it if she had an attack now…please, please don't let her be having an attack. I don't think I can help her this time around._

I blinked from the shock. I just heard Sasuke's thoughts! Not only that, but something was drawing me into his eyes. In those eyes I saw something that shook me deeper than to the core.

I felt as if I had seen it before, I didn't like it then and I really didn't like it now.

Sasuke was inside a dome of mirrors and there were needles sticking out of him. Blood was everywhere. But what got me the most was that someone was holding him. I couldn't see his face, but it reminded me of the dream I had before that involved Shika…this was the same guy.

Sasuke spoke again and I focused entirely on him and not the mysterious boy I couldn't remember or put a name to.

"My body just moved on it's own…I hated you…I wanted to kill that man, my brother…don't die."

"Sasuke, I hated you too….don't die! SASUKE!"

My eyes widened and tears tried to escape my betraying eyes, until another voice distracted me. I snapped my head from Sasuke and his onyx colored eyes to Gaara and his teal colored eyes.

"What's wrong?" his voice, used to always holding no emotion, held something I didn't want to think about.

Our eyes connected like Sasuke's, and I was pulled into another dream…no. It wasn't a dream, it was a memory. I had seen all this before but had forgotten it.

Gaara was on his back in the air, bent in agony. Screams escaped his throat while a sob left mine. No tears betrayed us, though by the time the screaming stopped it didn't matter. I wanted to cry, all that pain Gaara endured I had _felt _it just as he did. All the agony Gaara had gone through from start to finish I had suffered right alongside him.

All through the process I had focused on Gaara and didn't notice until the end after he became motionless that there was a monstrous statue behind him with nine eyes.

Two words entered my mind: Bijuu and Shukaku.

A giant tan raccoon with golden eyes flashed before my eyes; more tears threatened to spill but I held them back with a sheer force of will.

Then the background changed to an open field with Gaara's body between two forms. A old women and a male who I couldn't see. The man was the same one who I just saw in the memory of Sasuke trapped in the Ice Mirror Dome.

"Ella?"

My memory vision ceased when Shika became my new focus.

I knew without a single doubt that I was on a battle field. My vision and thoughts were filled with Shika falling before my eyes. I screamed his name as I ran toward him. Time seemed to slow as I ran; and I knew it did. Time was almost stopped.

My knees fell to the ground as I grabbed Shika and pulled his body close. His head, I made sure, rested in my lap.

"Shika, Shika love, don't do this to me. What about Temari? You can't leave us…" I whispered as I bent and rested my forehead against his. "We need you, what can we do without you?"

I felt them approach. Two were coming to stand around us to protect us while I took care of Shika. The other one was keeping his sister away. She couldn't come near us; if she did we would fall apart. Right now Shika didn't need that.

"What's the damage?" a male voice asked from behind me. I didn't have to turn around to know he had a sparrow mask on.

It didn't take long to look over my Sloth masked ANBU lying in my lap. I didn't like what I saw.

"He's got a few kunai wounds that aren't deep."

"The bad damage?" my raven masked ANBU asked from in front of me as he sliced two Shinobi in half. Then he caught a group to our right on fire.

"A Genjutsu was cast on him that sapped his strength to make him weak before some type of offensive Ninjutsu finished the job. This damn Jutsu cut so deep into him that I may have to take a few limbs off. Not only that…there is so much blood. Someone used an Elemental Jutsu on him." I stopped as I realized why there was so much blood.

"What?" both my Sparrow and Raven asked at once and at the same time. They wanted to look at me, but as soon as they did that an enemy would pop up and take their attention away from me.

"The blood…whoever attacked him wanted to him die slowly and painfully. They used the Blood Jutsu." I whispered afraid if I said it aloud that it would be true. I didn't want it to be. If it was my Sloth was dead.

"Heal him!" Sparrow cried as an enemy Ninja shoved a sword at him. He soon became occupied in a sword fight, which Raven took over for him. Sparrow then took on the one with many weapons attacking behind me.

"I can't," I sobbed with sorrow. No…how could someone I loved so much die like this? I wished I could heal him.

"You can heal him now do it, damn it!" Raven demanded of me as he finished his enemy and squatted down next to me.

I shook my head, he didn't understand. "I can't heal him, not with the Chakra I contain."

"What do you mean?" Sparrow asked as he set up a Water barrier around us. We were lucky there was a lake less than fifty feet away. To help keep us safe, Raven created a Fire barrier a few feet beyond that.

"My charka is half demon charka, if combined with a human it changes them. Look at the Jinchūriki; and they were babies when it happened. Shika is an adult." I told them as my raven ripped off his mask.

"Don't give me that shit. You healed me and I wasn't a baby." Sasuke growled with so much emotion filling his voice.

I shook my head at him again. "If I heal him now, he will be changed forever. Not just until he dies, but for the rest of eternity. If he dies now, and is reborn he will always have some of my charka inside of him. The chakra will mix with his soul."

"What about Gaara?" Neji asked as he too, took off his mask. "Shukaku isn't inside of him any longer."

"Jinchūriki will have their demons charka bound to them always; just like mine would be to Shika."

No one spoke for what felt like years. The one that broke the silence wasn't the one we thought would speak: Shika.

"Fine, do it."

I didn't ask him if he was sure or not; he didn't have the time. Instead of wasting time asking if he was sure; I laid my hands on his chest while I closed my eyes and guided my charka into his body.

I tore myself, this time, out of the memory. My eyes were closed as I held them to my chest. They all said my name at once and it brought back three flashes, one of each of my guys so badly injured that I had to heal them with my demonic charka.

Then I saw the shadow of someone as I healed Gaara. I saw him walking toward me…no running toward me; yelling my name in fear as if he was scared for my sake. An enemy took away his attention; by the time he was focused on my again Gaara had already gotten up, kissed me on the cheek and disappeared in a whirl of sand.

I smiled at the one still running toward me that I could only see as a shadow as I collapsed in exhaustion.

In the next second I was in his arms, I couldn't hear what he was saying but it sounded like he was begging me not to leave him. I raised my shaky hand to his face and told him I loved him. My hand fell as my eyes closed and darkness took me: body and soul. I knew from the beginning that the darkness was always going to take me.

In the distance I heard him screaming my name and then a burst of hot red demonic charka tried to grab me and bring me toward him but I slipped out of its grasp and further into the darkness. I knew what that meant. I knew what that charka and demon would do once it didn't have me.

They would destroy the world…and for once I didn't care.

--

When I came to, I realized that I was in someone's arms. Someone was holding me carefully but firm and the emotions running through their body was enough to make me sway. There were so many emotions: pain, anger, guilt, helplessness, sorrow, worry, and love.

And this wasn't just from the one holding me. I read the emotions easily from all those around me.

I slowly opened my eyes and saw worried faces of my best friends. The only ones I could trust.

"Ella? You okay?" Shika asked as he raised his hand palm faced and laid it across my forehead. "You're not hot anymore."

I shook my head and he took his hand off. "Can we go, please?" I asked almost desperately.

Sasuke—who was the one holding me—picked me up as he stood up; what was it with guys and holding me lately? I knew I weighed a lot more then they could press…or was I? I really didn't know how much they bench pressed to be honest. Knowing them it was more than I could have guessed.

"Yeah, let's go," Gaara agreed as we all walked out of the classroom, down the hallway and out of the school.

I looked for Sasuke and Shika's cars but they weren't there. I couldn't find them.

We four knew each other so well I didn't even have to voice my question.

"We didn't drive today." Sasuke told me.

"When Sasuke called me last night asking me if you stayed over at my house we figured something happened and you would probably needed us." Shika continued as we got into my car.

Sasuke put me in the passenger seat, while he took our book bags and put them in the trunk. He got in the driver's seat while my other two guys put their book bags in the trunk and got in the back.

I just leaned back and tried to take a nap; but that wasn't happening. Every time I closed my eyes I saw blood and death. So instead of the nap I listened intently to the small talk my friends made, until we got to where we were going.

We got there in record time. Why? Sasuke was getting annoyed, especially at the topic of conversation.

"Payback is a bitch, Sasu," I told him as we parked.

"What did I do?"

Shika sighed. "It shouldn't matter what you did, just that you did it. Women are troublesome."

I turned around in the seat and stared Shika down.

"See, they are very troublesome."

"Then why are you dating one?" Gaara asked curiously.

Shika looked shocked and didn't like where this conversation was going. His eyes gave a desperate plea as he looked at me.

I chuckled. "He is dating your sister because it was even more troublesome to not date her."

"Then why don't you break up with her?" Sasuke asked as he turned around as well.

I grinned. "Because that is even more troublesome then not dating her."

Shika sighed and muttered his favorite word again.

I smiled and for the first time that day I thought everything was going to be okay. I turned around in my seat and opened the car door. As if that was the signal we all got out of the car and started walking.

We were at our place. Our place was a clearing next to a forest that was just outside of town. Ever since we were little this was our place. This place was just like what my tree was to me. Except it was for all of us, not just one; we had at one point in time all come on our own to be filled with its peace, but it never worked. The peace only came if we were all here.

Sasuke walked ahead with Shika in the back and with Gaara next to me. Once we saw a good spot we sat down (on the blanket that Gaara had thought to get out of my car) in silence.

No one felt the need to talk here; we just didn't need to. After a few minutes I decided to lie down. I noticed that Shika had already done it. I chuckled softly. I was in the middle—so to speak—Shika was to my right and to Gaara's right, which meant he was on the end. Sasuke was on my left.

I knew that if there was anyplace that I could take a nap and not see those horrible things it was here. And I was right.

Within minutes of lying down, I was off in dream land. I found out later I was only out for twenty minutes before I was woke up. By what? My cell phone.

To my eternal gratitude my phone didn't start singing _I Hate Everything About You_; instead it sang _So Cold_ by Breaking Benjamin.

"Isn't that your ringtone for me?" Sasuke asked as I reached for my phone in my pocket.

"No," I said as I found it. "Yours is _Riot_, by Three Days Grace."

I hit the button to answer it.

"Yes?"

"Hello little one, how are you?"

"I'm fine now." I answered.

There was a pause. It seemed everyone today could connect dots between the words said and not said.

"And between our conversation this morning and now?" he asked.

I sighed. "You know the answer to that already."

"What happened?"

I closed my eyes and slung my left arm over my eyes.

"Too many things," I said with so much tiredness in my voice; it was just too hard to mask it otherwise.

"Give my little brother the phone."

Without saying anything I hand it over to Sasuke.

"Hello?" Sasuke asks cautiously.

"Little brother, why is she like that? What happened?"

"Itachi…" Sasuke started but looked at me and stopped. "I'll tell you when you get home tonight."

"Sasuke I'm already here. I didn't go into work today, thanks to Ella."

"Why?" Sasuke asked as he looked straight at me.

"Because if I did I wouldn't be here having this conversation with you."

"We are so having a long talk when I get home Aniki." Sasuke told him.

"Can't wait," Itachi said before he hung up. He was always the one who hung up first. I tried asking him why before, but I never got a straight answer.

Sasuke gave me my phone back.

"How about we go home now?" I suggested and we did just that.

This time I drove just to keep my mind off things. I dropped off Shika first, for his house was closer. Then Sasuke's house was next. After I dropped him off I headed for Gaara's house. When we got to Gaara's house I pulled in and was trying to decide if I was going in or not.

We sat there for a few minutes while I tried to decide. After those few minutes Gaara decided for me. He got out of the car while I popped the trunk. He grabbed mine as well as his book bag and came around to my door.

"Come on," Gaara said and I opened the door. We both went into the house and he dropped our bags off at the front door and I went straight to the room in the house that was assigned to me. Gaara followed me.

"Are they home?" I asked as I went to the dresser and got a shirt out and changed. Gaara, Sasuke, Shika and I have been changing in front of each other since we were kids. Even now when we were seventeen and eighteen and had totally different bodies (well he had basically the same one) it didn't matter if we got naked in front of each other.

I kept my bra and underwear on when I got into one of those long shirts. The shirts were actually Gaara's; well it depended on the place I slept at. At Sasuke's house it was either his or Itachi's. At Shika's…if he had one it would be his. Sometimes he did, but usually he had only one. And that one was always mine. Even when Temari stayed over and spent the night (when his parents weren't around) she didn't get to wear that shirt. She wore one of the button-up ones. I always got the long T-shirts.

"So…what are we going to do until I leave?" I asked as I turned around and sat on the bed. He was already laid out on the other side. On second thought, instead of sitting I laid down on my side facing him.

"What do you want to do?" Gaara answered with a question.

I sighed. "It's always that way with all of you. Since you want to do what I want to do, then we will do what I want to do."

"And that is?" Gaara asked as he turned his face toward me. We now where both leaning on our sides.

I grinned. "You aren't thinking like a pervert are you?"

Gaara gave me one of those looks. "Do you want me to?"

I smirked as I leaned toward him. Our lips were centimeters away. "Do you want me to?" I breathed as our eyes stayed connected.

He chuckled. "I don't think you will."

To prove him wrong I crossed those few centimeters and kissed his lips. Just for a few seconds, after those seconds were up I leaned back and smirked. Gaara looked shocked to the core. I could feel just how shocked my Panda-chan was; because I _felt_it. It was as if I was the one shocked. Gaara felt a whole lot more than shock and I wasn't sure I really wanted to dive deep into those.

Instead I snuggled into him and tried to sleep in his arms. Another thing we had been doing since we were little.

Sasuke and Gaara were always my protectors. I had made so many jokes in Elementary and Middle School about how they were my boyfriends. Shika was always someone I could go to; someone who cared for me like a sister. The lazy genius always treated me as one too. But Gaara and Sasuke I knew were always different.

I wasn't sure if I wanted our relationship to change. I knew I would be beyond happy if we were together. But which one? Sasuke or Gaara? I knew I couldn't have both.

I wouldn't let myself think about that right then; so I just went to sleep.

--

When I opened my eyes I knew I was in the bed alone. Gaara was gone. Usually I would be upset that he would leave me like this; but not tonight.

I breathed a sigh of relief when I realized that this was the first time all day that nothing invaded my sleep. The twenty minute nap in the clearing didn't count as sleep since it was so short.

Quiet as I could, I got up and pulled on a pair of jeans and long sleeved T-shirt. Next my shoes got put on; then I left the room. I heard nothing; the house was as quiet as a ninja on an assassination mission. That was how I knew something was wrong.

Kankuro and Temari would be arguing and fighting more than three times every half hour. Plus the T.V would be on and I didn't even hear that.

I went straight to the kitchen and found a note on the table.

Something is wrong with Uncle; so we left. I didn't want to wake you since this was the only time you have had peace sleeping today.

_Thanks Gaara, no matter how unemotional and antisocial you are, I know what's really inside. You are a very caring person. Especially to those you really care for._

By the time I get back, no doubt you will be gone. Uchiha is home.

I saw the hidden words in that. He knew I hated to be alone.

I will see you tomorrow.

Love,

Panda-chan

That brought a smile to my face as I knew he knew it would.

I looked at the microwave above the stove.

_Damn! It's a quarter to midnight. I can't believe I slept that long._

I ran back up to my room and grabbed my purse which had my wallet and my keys and went outside.

By the time I got to the tree it was passed midnight.

As I reached out to touch the tree I heard someone speak.

"You're late," a male voice said behind me.

I jumped, turned around and pressed my back against the tree. My heart stopped beating so fast once I saw that it was him.

Mr. Startler.

"Did I startle you again?" he asked teasingly.

I scowled but didn't answer. Instead, I slid down and sat down on the ground at the base of the tree. All the time my eyes were on him. He never changed his facial expression; it always stayed on the tiny smirk.

I frowned as I saw his smirk. I knew that smirk. I called it the 'Uchiha Teasing Smirk.' But how did he know it?

He saw my frown. "What's wrong?"

I crossed my arms over my chest before I said anything. "Do you know any Uchiha's?"

Mr. Startler looked startled; his eyes widened in shock so I knew I connected with something.

"So you do know one." I said as I watched his confusing reaction.

I would have called his new look a deer caught in the headlights—that is if it stayed. I gave him a few points; he could change his expressions quickly.

"I knew one a long time ago," he answered vaguely.

My eyes narrowed at him. If it was any other day before this one I would have let his answer go. But after all the weird things that had happened today? Hell to the no.

It was just something about that statement and my memory vision that seem to want to connect; but it wouldn't.

"A long time ago, huh?" I murmured half heartily.

My eyes, words and voice gave something away. Something I didn't want him to know; but luckily for me, he didn't put the dots together. At that time, to him the final picture was impossible. His connection with my memories was something I had to think further on.

"Do you know any Uchiha's?" he asked me.

I blinked away the thoughts that weren't really making any sense. Why would my memory visions be connected with him?

"What's your name? You haven't told me yet." I countered his question with one of my own.

"Naruto. Uzumaki Naruto."

_To be continued..._

**Notes: Spanish actually**

punta: bitch

hijo de punta: son of a bitch


	3. Chapter 3

**MOON SAYS**: Hey guys! Sorry...I had sent this to my beta two weeks ago (I think) and now I edited it! In the end of this chapter, I didn't want something to happen. I wanted her to not know what was going on (but know at the same time). What I mean, is that I wanted Naruto have to explain to her. But in the end that will happen anyway.

**Words: **5, 501

**Pages: **12

**ENJOY!**

**Skeleton Fall**

**Chapter 3**

"How's it coming?" I asked as I did a circle walk around my friend and his creation.

"Troublesome," he responded as he stopped working to watch me.

I didn't look into his eyes; I didn't want to give anything away. The moment I looked into them would be the moment my secret was given away.

They knew something was going on and I wasn't telling them about it. One week had passed since I started seeing Naruto. Not date seeing, but just seeing him at my tree. All we did was talk…I wanted to laugh as I realized something. I never told him my name and he never asked for it. Now, it seemed weird that it never came up as we were talking, but while we talked, it wasn't weird at all.

I had a sinking suspension that we somehow knew each other. That was what it felt like when we talked. I mean, it was just like talking with Sasuke, Gaara or Shika. We never needed each other's names and we knew each other perfectly.

But this Naruto was different…he always seemed different. Something was nagging me at the back of my mind; but I never could figure out what it was.

Sigh.

"So…do you want to come over tonight?" Shika asked and interrupted my thoughts. "Also, mom has threatened me to tell you that she wants to help you get ready for the Masquerade that you are going to."

I chuckled softy. "Temari and the other girls have told me the same thing. Tell your mom that they all have to decide on who is giving me that make over. As of now, Temari is the only one who is willing to dress me up like I want to."

Shika groaned. "My mom just doesn't think that you should be all dark."

"Instead she dresses me as bright as can be; and as girly." I shuddered at the last part.

"Aniki actually wants you to come over that night," Sasuke said as he came up behind me. I forgot I had a notebook in my hands until he grabbed it.

Honestly, at that moment I forgot what I had written in there. It wasn't until I saw Sasuke's face darkened that I remembered and snatched it back.

"Mine," I said simply as he gave me a questioning look.

"How…why," he started off then changed into a different questioning direction. "Where did you hear those?"

I looked down at my notebook. How could I tell him that Naruto told them to me? If I told him that I felt like I was betraying my new friend of two weeks. And that was something I never did; I never betrayed friends no matter how long I had them.

So what was I supposed to tell him?

"Did you have another dream?" he asked quietly. "Is that what's being going on this past week that you won't tell us about?"

It was then I noticed that Gaara had snuck up on me while Sasuke was reading my notebook.

That notebook had all the stories that Naruto had told me. They were so good that I wanted to make a story out of them and publish it.

One of my passions was writing and reading.

But I couldn't tell my guys where I got them. They would get all over protective on me and forbid me from going and seeing Naruto again. That I couldn't have. Not now, not after everything that had happened. I finally had him back and I wasn't giving him up.

I blinked owlishly inside my mind. My thoughts weren't making sense. I knew I had never met Naruto before that night I almost died…so why did I just act like I had lost him for a couple thousand years and now just found him? It didn't make sense…but it did in a way that I couldn't describe. It was just like before when I said that I knew him so well, just like my guys. But two weeks wasn't enough to know someone completely like I felt I did.

I shook my head and cleared it. There was no way that I would tell them about Naruto. But if they believed it was the dreams, they would get off my case about those two weeks that I disappeared every night. They knew I had a secret place just like ours, except mine worked without them. They never pressed to know it and had left it alone.

So with those thoughts in mind I quickly came up with a plan. I would lie and tell the truth at the same time!

Perfect.

"You remember my secret place?" they nodded, "Well, I have been spending more time there and end up falling asleep and dreaming." I shuddered to make my story seem more believable. And it worked.

I felt ashamed. This was the first time I had lied to them, and it felt horrible. We always had a deal between us: no lies. We could keep something to ourselves and not share it, but we couldn't tell lies about it.

And I just broke that important rule. It hurt like hell, but I quickly buried it deep inside of me; so deep that I knew they would never find it; even if they somehow got into my mind.

They took my story, believed it and dropped it. My guys knew that the only way to help me with my dreams was to wait and have me come to them. This time I wouldn't, because it wasn't dreams, but they didn't know that.

"So since this has been settled between us; I am going to tell Sakura and them about my deal with your mom," I looked at Shika. "And Itachi's friend Konan." I looked at Sasuke.

Sasuke's eyes widened. "You mean Itachi's boss' wife? Why would she want to dress you up? Doesn't she have kids?"

I sighed. "She has a son that she named after her and Pein's old friend. But no, she has no daughters."

I quickly left my guys before something else happened and I might have given something I didn't want to give away, away.

"Sakura, how is my idea coming?"

The pink headed girl nodded and then went into details while I listened intensively and asked the right questions in all the right places and she shot the answers right back at me.

After my questions I then told Sakura, Ino, Hinata, and Tenten about the deal I told Shika, before I secretly left the preparations. Somehow I had been bribed into helping out; even I don't know how that happened. I think it ended up where I don't have to deal with my foster mom anymore.

I had faith in my friends, even without my help they would finish before the dance came to life in two weeks. The tickets—and my idea attached to it—would go on sell a week before the dance.

--

At midnight I met Naruto again a week later. We had decided not to meet until a week before Halloween. I had been wanting to wait a while to tell him and give him his ticket to the dance…and a week before Halloween was the perfect time. Especially since I didn't plan on seeing him until the dance; girl had to get her costume ready.

"Are you doing anything on Halloween?" I asked as I stared at the tree debating if I should climb it. Shrugging, I climbed the tree anyway.

Because I didn't look at him I didn't see his eyes widen at my question. Maybe I would have seen more than that. Maybe some of my questions would have been answered then; but since I didn't look, I didn't see them.

"No, not really, do you have something in mind?" he asked curiously as I quickly and successfully climbed my tree.

I looked down at him as I settled myself on the tree's lowest branch and on the opposite side as the Skeleton.

Now I watched his face as I thought up an answer. "Actually I do. Do you want to come?"

He raised an eyebrow. "That statement can be taken many ways. Come where? To a party, my funeral, house, my death? Many answers, of course," he showed me a perverted smirk, "unless you're talking about a different come; but I think that one is spelled a little differently."

I scowled and fought off my blush. "You must be hanging out with perverts when I'm not around."

He chuckled darkly. "You have no idea. One of my teachers was a self proclaimed super pervert. Another read the super pervert's perverted books. Even my father was influenced by the super pervert."

I sighed as I twisted and laid down on the tree branch. "You need new teachers."

"I had one," his voice turned distance. "She was different than any other teacher I had seen. My teacher taught her students everything they needed to survive; a teaching style I called tough love. She cared for her students and did anything and everything to protect them. She even died for them."

I turned my head and watched his face. I could see the pain etched onto it. A wound I knew instinctively that time couldn't heal. Only one person could, how I wished I was that person. But I knew I wasn't, it was that teacher of his.

As I saw the pain and I saw something else in his eyes. Love. He loved his teacher with everything he had. I wondered what kind of love it was. I could tell when he was talking about the perverts that he cared for them deeply. Even the super pervert…I knew he loved him the most.

"So you coming or not?" I asked, knowing it could be taking both ways.

That snapped him out of the thoughts of his pain and sorrow. Something I knew would happen and was glad for it; even if he went all perverted on me.

"Depends on the coming, if you're talking about what I think you're talking about something, has to happen first before I can 'come'."

I laughed despite myself. "The 'coming' I am talking about is to a Masquerade my group is making happen."

The blonde in front of me snickered as I shook my head at him.

"Baka," I teased him but as soon as I said it that déjà vu came back up.

"I'm not a baka!" he protested greatly. "I am way smarted than you!"

I raised an eyebrow at that. "Oh really? Then if you're so smart you would come and challenge me at this dance."

He gave me a soft glare and agreed. "So what is the challenge?"

I smiled. "Got you," he looked startled as I twisted and jumped off the branch and landed in a crouch. I straightened my body up. "You fell into my trap. Now you have to go to some boring dance!"

He groaned as he listened to my words. My blonde idiot fell for it, hook line, and sinker.

"What is it?" he asked in defeat, as he leaned up against the tree.

"Each person going is given a ticket, and the ticket has an identity on it. Everyone will be partnered and will enter together. Your character will be announced as you go in."

"So your challenge is to not only go with you, but to play my part?"

"And dance," she told him, "not much if I do say so myself. I hate dancing."

Naruto only took a few moments to think it over before he agreed. He had a feeling deep down that he was going to regret this. I saw it in his eyes; it seemed the more he was around me the more he dropped his guard.

As soon as I thought that, I knew I was in the same boat. I needed to get out of here before something happened that I would regret. I couldn't drop my guard completely. It just couldn't happen, I know I would break. Even my guys haven't seen me completely without my guard. That was something I wasn't sure was actually going to happen.

"Here," I said as I gave him the ticket with an envelope that held his new identity. The card says your color and name. It's up to you to how you dress."

I started to leave and go toward the road to my car…something he never seemed to have.

"You're leaving already?" he called to me as I was halfway to my car.

I turned around and told him. "I won't see you till that night. Make sure you meet me at the entrance, but don't let anyone see you! Be a ninja!"

His laugh was loud enough for me to hear it at the road, which was forty foot away from the tree.

I smiled and laughed with him. I didn't know I had slapped him in the face with irony.

--

The next day at school I told my guys that I would give them their cards and told them about my idea with the identity and such. They loved it and wanted their cards then. But I laughed at them and shook my head.

"Why?" Gaara asked as his eyes had a tint of curiosity in them.

"I will give you your colors now, but only at the end of the day will I give the card to you! I don't want to know what you got and you aren't going to know what I got either! I'm so glad its Friday."

Sasuke did his 'hn-ing' while Shika said his favorite word; Gaara was silent as he always was.

"Gaara your color is a bit difficult to place. It's like brown but super light, tanish maybe." I paused as I went to the computer and got on **Google**. After typing in tan and looking at images I waved Gaara over. "Do you see this light color; it's the picture of this building? I didn't know it was called desert tan…hmm….well this is your color."

Gaara nodded and had a faraway look in his eyes as I turned to Sasuke. "You're black, if you want to get creative with it, and be totally original, go with dark bluish black."

"Since you're lazy I'm going to just type something into the computer and get a color. Yes, this is random and will be on your card."

"But you said you didn't know what we were." Sasuke accused with a smirk on his face. He thought he caught me did he?

Wrong.

"I don't know what your character is, but I know your colors. I just looked at the color part."

Quickly I turned the screen around and started looking up a certain animal. When **Google** showed me pictures I almost screamed.

"What the hell? This can't be right," I muttered and look at a picture up close. Nooo, this couldn't be the right animal.

"What?" Shika asked as he raised an eyebrow.

"I don't want to scar you for life so you might not want to look." Sasuke though, wouldn't listen so he came to stand behind me.

"What the fuck is that?" he whispered. "It looks high…do you see his smile?"

"It probably is…well this is Shika's animal," I paused as I thought that the wording didn't sound right. "Well, what he would be if he was an animal."

"He's a sloth? These are ugly." Gaara said as he looked over my shoulder as well.

Quickly I go to the top and type in baby sloths. And quickly 'awws' came out of my mouth. "This would be why I want a Sloth: as long as it stayed a baby."

I stopped and switched back to the sloth as I looked at it again. "It looks like a turtle, badger and something else all mixed into one. Monkey maybe?"

Shika sighed and shut off the computer. "What is my color?"

I sighed. "Take away from my fun. It's brown."

Then the bell rang and took away their reply.

--

School went by fast today and at the end I handed them their ticket with an envelope and left school. I had to work on my dress for the dance. God knew I hated dresses, but hey, it had to be done. Unless I could buy one, but I don't think a dress shop would make one just how I wanted it.

--

The night of the dance I had Temari do my makeup and help me get dressed. She had, thankfully, kicked out Gaara and made him go to Sasuke's house. Konan was there as well. Kankuro wanted to help, but Temari refused his offer, so he was sent to help Gaara.

I had a black dress on. The top part was a corset designed by me. The bottom part had the sign on my car all over it, in a random weird design that I can't explain. The skirt part was tight, close to my body just like the top, except at the end. Toward the bottom it waved out.

The top corset part was the difficulties to make. I had put belt onto it where it tightened it more. There was a lace up on the back, and the lace was dark bluish.

"So what are we going to do about eye shadow and lips?" Konan asked as she circled me.

"You know how the Egyptian's did eyes?" I asked and they nodded. "That is what I want."

So they made the ends of my eyes curve with black and they outlined my eyes as well. After it was done, I knew I had a little of Gaara with me tonight.

My lips ended up red as blood. I knew with all the dark colors I was going to look really pale and that was how it was supposed to be. My hair was blood red and ran down my back in waves.

My nails were black with red tips. Since my dress was so long I was able to wear boots.

My mask was the best part: it was wings. The color was the same color I gave to Gaara a few days ago; the last time I went to school.

Konan and Temari laughed when they saw me completely ready.

"If it was anyone else, they would have never pulled this off. But somehow you do," Temari told me seriously as she quit laughing. Konan agreed with her.

"Konan," I started and she tilted her head. "Since I let you help and I will allow you to take pictures, Itachi won't get into trouble, for not going into work correct? You know, for the seven times I have made him stay out, over the course of past three weeks?"

Konan gave me a smile. "The things you do for him; he should be quite lucky that you're watching out for him."

I grabbed my cell phone and dialed his number.

"Yes?"

"You're cleared," I told him.

He chuckled. "So am I going to see the dress? You did make me miss work four times so I could go and buy you things for it."

"One of those I saved your life. Everyone died at that meeting, which you would have been at if I didn't stop you and died as well. You skipped two on your own." I reminded him.

"Sasuke made me go with him for those two. We had to get his costume." He confessed and I laughed.

"Konan is taking pictures and will show everyone tomorrow." I told him and he sighed and then it became entirely too quiet.

"So, are we meeting up before the dance or are we meeting there?" Sasuke's voice came on.

I laughed. "Who said I was going with you?"

"What? Why not? Gaara and Shika already have a date, and I don't."

I shook my head at him even though he didn't see it. "I have you a date. She should be dropped off at your house with Gaara's date."

Silence ensured both ways in our phone call. "Who are you going with?" he finally asked.

"You'll see, bye Sasu!" I said before I hung up. I turned to Temari and grinned evilly.

"Your turn," I told her.

"Why?" she asked as confusion ran through her voice.

Konan turned on her and stood by me. "You're going to the dance too."

"Why?"

"Because Shika has to have a date to even get into Masquerade. Now, we only have two hours. Hop too it! Your outfit is in your room."

--

As I walked toward the entrance I felt an arm wrapped around my waist. I knew who it was because this felt so familiar.

"So you're here," I said, "have you been waiting long?"

"Nope, I just got here." My partner whispered in my ear and I shivered, not from the cold. "When do we go in?"

"Actually, were going through a secret entrance and are the last to arrive. I want to see everyone get there first; or at least hear their names. I'm not entirely sure that my secret entrance will include visuals."

We moved silently and quickly to the secret entrance as if we were born to be sneaky and as if we had done it so much that it was second nature to us.

"Here stop!" I whispered to him as we came to the door; we entered and walked without sound to the area I told him about.

"Shh," I whispered, they've started."

"**Entering: The Green Beast and The Pink Medic."**

I felt him freeze beside me; our arms were touching. "Who was that?" he asked, keeping his voice low.

"My friend Sakura and her boyfriend Lee," I told him and he stiffened even more.

"**Entering: The Strong Eater and The Mind Possessor."**

"And this?" he asked again.

"Choji and his girlfriend Ino," I replied.

"**Entering: The Dirty Dog and The Confident Heiress." **

Before he could ask I told him. "That was Kiba and Hinata."

"**Entering: The Lord and Lady Bug User."**

"Shino and the girlfriend that his parents picked out for him. I don't really know her."

"**Entering: The Master of Fate and The Mistress of Weapons."**

"Neji and Tenten," I whispered.

"**Entering: The Lazy Sloth and The Fan Mistress."**

"Shika and Temari; Shika's one of my guys." I told him as to set him at east. He was tensing way too much.

"**Entering: The Lord Shukaku and The Quiet Lady."**

"That's another one of my guys: Gaara. The girl is a random one I found. See with the cards that tell you who you are they also say who your partner is."

Naruto unstiffened and looked at me curiously. "Mine didn't say I had a partner."

"Neither did mine," I grinned, but I had one of those sudden intake of breath moments when I realized I only had one guy left. "We have to go to the entrance after this one! Soon the other guests will be arriving. We are last on the list to go on because I didn't feel like standing around and clapping for people."

"Why are the others first then?" he asked as we walked away.

"Because they created the Masquerade and are in charge. Those people will always be the first in charge. Shh, the last one is coming."

"**Entering: The Emo Raven and The Gothic Owl."**

"Who was that?" he asked as they got up and went back the way they came.

"Sasuke and a random girl." I told him and then we walked in silence. I could feel the tension in his body and I didn't like it. Before we got to the entrance I stopped and turned on him.

"What's going on? Why are you so bloody tense? We are not going in there until you get rid of that tension."

He stared at me for a few seconds before he laughed. "You are so like her, it's not funny anymore. I'm fine now, I promise."

I shook my head at him and continued on. I was now happy that he was so tense anymore; but I was very confused. Who was I like?

We got to the entrance and I made sure our masks were in place and stepped up to the guy that was announcing the group ahead of us. We waited until he was finished with the last one group before us before I gave him our cards.

"**Entering: The Honorable Grandson and The Optimistic Girl and The Number Divider."**

After he finished I gave him our cards.

"**Entering: The Lord Kyuubi and The Queen Akki."**

As we walked down all those stairs I felt the tension that my guys were throwing out. I felt the anger and the fear. Not to mention the shock. Somehow as I looked at them, I knew it wasn't because I was going with someone else.

It was something about Naruto that shocked them and brought out those other emotions. Did they know him? That would be the only way they would express those kinds of emotions like fear and shock.

How could they tell who he was? He had a fox mask on that covered his face. The mask made him have red eyes with slits in them. His outfit reminded me of a character in a video game I played: Dante from _Devil May Cry 3;_ only Naruto with red hair instead of the silver that Dante had. But his clothes looked like Dante's did in _Devil May Cry 4_. He looked just like Dante, with his red duster open, but he had a red shirt and red pants. And on his shirt he had a face of a fox.

One that looked oddly familiar. But I pushed it to the back of my mind; I couldn't think about that now. The dance had just begun and I wasn't going to ruin it.

The guests were in a half circle on the sides of the stairs and my friends were in front of me on the dance floor.

I spun around when I got to them and Naruto did as well. He seemed to read my movements well.

"Welcome!" I greeted the guest of the Masquerade. "Thank you all for coming! There is no sense in me prolonging this evening any longer with words that you will never remember nor will you pay attention to."

My words made them laugh. I smiled.

"Have fun being someone you're not for a change instead of yourself every single boring day." My smile now was genuine. "Let the Masquerade begin!"

As soon as the words came out of my mouth the music began. I turned around and headed straight for Sakura.

Even though I smiled, she saw the anger behind them. "Do not ever make me do that again!" I told her in a harsh whisper.

I turned away from her and walked back to Naruto. He smirked. "So, it seems you were forced to do something. I had thought that was impossible."

I narrowed my eyes at him. "Shut up, I made you come after all."

He chuckled. "That's manipulating someone, not getting manipulated yourself. There is a difference."

That was when I hit him on his arm; he winced and rubbed his arm. "That kind of hurt you know." I read the surprise in his words and eyes. Did he think I couldn't hit hard? No, that wasn't it; there was something I didn't know about him. Something that was really important. Something that made him surprised I had hurt him.

I had a bad feeling that I would find out what it was at the end of this night. I had another feeling that something was going to hurt me first.

I felt my guys approach. I knew they wanted to tell me something, but not with Naruto there. I felt Naruto stiffen again; maybe this wasn't a coincidence. Maybe he was reacting to my friends. Did he know them? Or did he know people similar to them?

I knew that it was the latter of the choice; there was no way he met my friends. He had told me himself that he just moved here a few years again and didn't go far from the area of the tree. There was a subdivision not far from the cemetery and I knew for a fact that those students didn't go to our school. There was a school that only those who lived in the subdivision could go to and all of the kids went there.

The first thing Sasuke said to me when he came forward was that the names sucked. I laughed. "Of course you don't like your name. But I bet that Gaara and Shika like theirs."

"Troublesome, don't drag me into this woman." Shika told me as he sent a small glare my way; but it didn't hurt because there wasn't really any force behind it.

Gaara shrugged as if he didn't care and I knew he didn't. Sasuke sighed and rolled his eyes at me. This was how all I arguments went. And every time I won all because he was waiting for back up that wasn't coming.

"So, troublesome girl, who is he?" Shika asked as he looked at Naruto. There was something in his eye that should have told me what was happening, but I missed it. No, more like I ignored it, I didn't want to know.

My perfect world didn't need to be turned upside down. But that was exactly what I got.

"Tonight his name is Kyuubi," I told them.

"Shika means his real name, idiot." Sasuke clarified for me.

"Should it matter tonight?" I asked tiredly. They were being overprotective fools again.

"It's alright. My name is Naruto." My Fox Dante said.

I knew I should have fought harder to keep his name a secret; because something was going on with them. I didn't know what, but everything kept on going back to that time I blacked out in the classroom a few weeks ago.

To keep the memories back I shoved them behind the door that held the things I couldn't understand. I grabbed Naruto's hand and pulled him out on the dance floor.

"You're dancing with me. Now," I told me firmly as I dragged him away. I said those words more for my friends, than for him. I rolled my eyes at them before I turned by back and began to get in a dancing position.

He didn't say anything as we started to dance. Our steps were together; it was as if we had been doing this for years. We were balanced, and it seemed as if our dance flowed with the music. We were in perfect sync.

It was something I had felt with all of my guys. Did this mean Naruto was one of my guys? How could I have missed that one?

"What are you thinking about?" he whispered in my ear before he twirled me. When I came back I whispered in his, "How much of a baka you are."

He laughed softly and shook his head. "If anyone is a baka, it's you. It's because you're an idiot that makes us love you so much."

"Right back at you," I smirked.

The words felt so familiar as if we had said them before. As soon as I threw them behind that door, the door burst opened and everything fitted together.

It was then it hit me. Baka. Naruto. Fox. Kyuubi. Shukaku. Sasuke Uchiha. Itachi Uchiha. Shikamaru Nara. Gaara of the Desert.

Everything from the moment I had that first dream to now, had been memories. Memories of a time long ago where we were all happy together, even during war we were happy.

I had flashes of every dream I had that involved someone I cared for so much, but I couldn't remember him. I had never seen what he looked like in those dreams; but now the picture came in perfectly clear.

He had three whisker marks on his face, up unto the very end. He had spiky sun kissed blonde hair and the bluest eyes I had ever seen in my entirely long life.

He was the one that had run to me as I finished healing the last of my friends: Gaara. He was the one who screamed my name begging me to stay, he tried to grab me and pull me back to him. Instead I fell further away from him.

I was the one who had destroyed the world.

I finally knew who he was. I finally saw who he was. The missing link was finally complete.

His name was Naruto Uzumaki Namikaze.

I looked up in my partner's face and my eyes grew wide and tears started to enter them.

He was the one I had condemned so long ago; and here he was right in front of me.

_To be continued..._


	4. Chapter 4

**MOON SAYS**: Well. sad but not, this is the last chapter of Skeleton Fall! It was supposed to be finished two months ago, but time got away from me. This is my Christmas present to you, my readers! MERRY CHRISTMAS and HAPPY NEW YEAR!

**WORDS**: 3, 372

**PAGES**: 8

ENJOY!

**Skeleton Fall**

**Chapter 4**

My legs actually gave out when the shock took control of my body. Lucky for me, my partner sensed the increasing tension in my body, and caught me when my legs gave out.

"I know I'm a good dancer and I'm also hot; but I wasn't aware I was so good looking and an awesome dancer, that it made you weak in the knees," _he _teased lightly, but I heard the tiny bit of worry buried in there.

No, I didn't hear it, I _felt _it.

I could also _feel _my guys tensed and worried at what was going on.

My head ached with the new—or old—found knowledge that I just acquired a few seconds ago. Well, not acquired, just remembered.

"What's wrong?" _he_ whispered in my ear.

Suddenly, without thinking, I pushed _him _away and stumbled back a few steps. So many emotions flashed through me. I couldn't tell any of them apart. What emotions was I feeling? Whose emotions were they?

The last question surprised me, but I tossed it away. No more confusing thoughts; enough were racing at lightning speed through my head.

I saw _him _struggle with himself. _He _wanted to know if I was alright, but he didn't even know how to ask. It was then, that I realized, _he _didn't even know my name.

_He_ reached out on a limb and called me something that seemed to rattle him.

"Akki?"

As soon as he said it a vision—no, it was a memory—flashed before my eyes.

"Akki?" Sasuke snorted. "Why would someone name their child Akki?" he paused as he looked up at me. "Oh, never mind."

Then it switched.

"Akki?" Gaara asked softly. "It's just another name for what we are."

The scene switched again.

"Che, Akki?" Shika said as he turned form his cloud glazing to me. Our eyes locked. "It means Demon. Why should we care whether or not someone is a demon? Let alone called one?"

My heart soared like the clouds he loved to watch; and they went higher with his words fresh to my ears.

Then _he _was in front of me. My sun kissed blonde, my sunshine, my light.

"Akki?" _he_ asked, startled at my question. "I know what it means. The Villagers wanted to name me that after they found out what happened to Kyuubi," _he_ told me, with no emotion. "But why should what people call us matter? Whether it is demon, or savior, or murderer? In the end, everyone dies and what others call you does not matter any longer."

I closed my eyes. _His_ words hit home then and now. Even if _he_ truly didn't understand the impact of _his_ words, the fool, _he_ never did understand. So many lives changed and made for the better, just because of _his_ words.

"Akki?" _he _asked again and his voice (and word) brought me out of my memories of another life.

I saw those red eyes flash blue and I had enough. There was too much confusion, too much recognition.

I ran.

Fast.

Faster than I knew I could run. But I laughed bitterly. This wasn't fast; if I was running fast no mortal or untrained eye could see me. When we trained, Sasuke and Neji had trouble using their Kekkai Genkai to keep up with me. Of course, when I used eye Kekkai Genkai, it was hard to follow them as well.

I ran without thinking of where I was going. My feet just took me somewhere while my mind and heart were in major turmoil. When I stopped I was at my tree. The tree where all this shit started. And now it would end here as well. Fitting, I supposed.

I was confused and not confused at the same time. I was a fricken walking and talking oxymoron!

I was a powerful half-demon that screamed full-demon; but on the other hand I was a puny mortal human that screamed human.

Everything was wrong.

I wasn't who I was. I was everything I wasn't supposed to be.

Afraid. Frightened. Scared. Alone. Confused. Human. Ignorant. Guilty.

I knew deep down, in the pit, of my heart and my soul, that I had condemned someone I loved. But I didn't know how he was punished.

_All because of me and my selfishness._

If only I had gone with him. I was the coward, I had run, and broken my promise. And he was the one who paid the price.

I ripped off the mask in anger and threw it away.

Anger at myself.

No, I wasn't angry; I was beyond furious. My emotions were calling to nature; and nature was responding with a vengeance.

The Wind was raging hard enough to rip trees out of the ground. Lightning flashed and thunder roared. The Earth was rumbling and shaking. It was pouring like there was going to be no tomorrow.

I toned down the Earth's reaction, but kept the others in full force. Except the ripping trees out of the ground; Earth wouldn't like that too much.

There was no way anyone was getting near me. The rain was hard coming down in rivers. By now it was flooding, and my tree's trunk was already half drowned in water.

From the lowest branch to the ground I think is twelve feet. So the Water was at least up to six foot now. I knew no one over six feet tall that would want to be near me.

Shika was five nine, Gaara was five eight, while Sasuke was right at six foot. Naruto was…no! I threw the thought of him right out of my mind.

Thinking of him would totally undermine me. My mind was so chaotic, that I couldn't make sense of anything.

Who was I really?

Was I a Demon Queen? One of the world's most powerful Shinobi? Was I so unstable that I needed those chosen by the elements to keep me grounded? Not to mention the whole soul thing.

Or was I a normal civilian girl? A girl that had lots of friends that cared for her, even if they made things hard on her? Was I a girl who had a fucked up life and needed to be grounded by her friends? Not to mention the whole group thing at school.

My hands covered my face. My mind was in shambles. I couldn't tell who was who. Which Renella was I? The one of the past? Or the one of the future?

"Damn it all!" I screamed. "I finally got away from the pain, guilt, regret and horror!"

Tears escaped my eyes and mixed with the rain; I didn't know if I was crying or it was the rain after awhile.

"Why? Finally it was all over, no more pain."

I cried.

As I cried, I felt like I was betraying myself.

I was strong, stronger than anyone else I knew. I had been through so much shit and I still walked on, acting like nothing had ever happened. Like I was never betrayed, never watched my mother and grandmother get murdered in front of my eyes. Or going on a rampage with my father by my side; forget the betrayal that lead to being hunted by the whole world and getting my soul ripped into seven pieces. Or falling in love with someone I could never have, because his future son would be one of my future Guardians. The massacres, either of them, didn't count.

One of the reasons I felt drawn to the son of a man one of personalities loved, was because of his ability to walk on as if nothing bad had ever happened to him. He was just like me. Our masks would never fall.

Only four could bring mine down. My precious Guardians, my Chosen-ones.

I loved them, and I showed it by saving three and condemning one to an unknown hell.

Abruptly, my head snapped forward. Someone was approaching, and they were hiding their charka like an expert who wielded it for years. A person who knew what charka was, how to use it, and how to bend it to their will.

How did I know they were there then? It was because I felt demonic charka. Only four others had demonic charka in this age. And I gave it to three of them. The other got it after he was born. They were my Guardians.

Gaara had demonic charka in his body, but not at the concentration that it was when I healed him. Naruto always had more than all of the other eight Jinchūriki. He had Kyuubi sealed inside of him; if one combined the Eight Tails with the One Tail, they would have Kyuubi's charka.

As they got closer I knew how many were coming toward me, and how many were not. All four of them were there, but three were staying back—as if they were guards—protecting and enacting a perimeter.

It didn't take a genius to realize who was there. Plus, my storm was clearing up a little. The Earth no longer moved or anything. The rain lessened, but didn't leave me completely.

That was something that made me smile. When it came to the Elements, they loved me more. The rain had always, in the past, comforted me. So did thunder storms.

My lightning and thunder toned itself down as well; but like the rain, it didn't disappear completely.

I was waiting for the Wind to dissolve around me, and I wasn't disappointed.

The Wind barrier around me made a hole—a door if you will—and then took on a wider stance. My barrier was still in place, but it just widened.

I felt my Kitsune's charka as he came closer.

Even though the Water was up six foot off the ground, it didn't bother the intruder. The bastard was walking on water, and old ninja trick.

Naruto.

He still wore his costume. I didn't have to look at myself to know my dress was soaked and my make-up was ruined.

I reached my hand out before I thought; as if my body knew something was going to happen before my mind registered the actions. There was a towel put into my hand. I wiped my face off; it took a few minutes, but the rain helped.

Once I was through, I threw the towel at him; it was easier than I thought. But it didn't make it to him. The rain claimed it first.

"We need to talk," my blonde Angel told me softly.

I rolled my eyes. "No, shit Sherlock, what gave you that idea?"

We both knew what was going on. I was confused and overridden with so many emotions that I lashed out in anger.

"Obviously you remember something," he said hesitantly. "I see that everyone's been re-born, but _her_."

We both knew who he was talking about. His beloved teacher.

"Are you her or just a cruel imitation?"

I thought about how to answer. Should I say I was her, or just an imitation he thought I was? What was the difference, really? Something inside of me told me not to tell him I was her.

"Would it matter whether or not I was your Renella?"

Clearly I didn't say if I was her or not, but he took it as I wasn't her. I saw how broken and dejected he looked and it pained me.

It hurt to know I caused this pain of his, but I needed answers.

"No, it wouldn't."

I wonder why I felt like mirroring the look of pain on his face.

I turned to my left, trying not to look at him, or else the pain would return. Something caught my attention though, and distracted me momentary.

The skeleton that started everything.

Suddenly, everything clicked for me.

"Are you tied to this skeleton?"

My question shocked him and he showed it; I seemed to have surprised him with my question. Naruto hadn't even thought that I would have figure it out, it seemed. The shock, though, was more powerful than the pain that occupied his face earlier.

The urge to chuckle, came to me, but I resisted it; seeing as this was not the time nor the place for such a reaction.

"Yes," was all he said.

Damn my curiosity!

"So, you are cursed."

The blonde just nodded, no words came out of his mouth to agree with his action though; and no words to deny it either.

So, he was cursed after all, as punishment for what he did. This meant that I condemned him to be cursed. But _how _was his cursed? What were all the juicy little details of his curse?

"Are you going to tell me, or are we going to just stand here and keep the silence up?"

Naruto's head just moved down, his wet blonde hair sticking to his head. The sun-kissed blonde stood on the water, as I sat on my tree, in complete and perfect silence.

Silence was something that used to love more than anything. Now I loathed it with a passion.

"You are an imitation," he said after a while of silence. "She was my life, my very reason for living toward the end. Almost everyone I cared for was dead; but she was my light during the dark times. She kept me sane, grounded, and alive."

_You were the light. I was the darkness. _I thought before he continued.

"Then, while I was fighting, that bastard Neji made her use her demonic charka to heal her Guardians. He died before she could save him, a good thing in my opinion. After she healed Gaara, she died; she had no charka left, no energy. I broke and lost control, Kyuubi as well. We killed everyone. As punishment the Nine Lords and the Reigning Queen of the Demon World, bound me to the skeleton for the rest of eternity."

I stopped breathing, was he telling the truth?

"It seems fair that when I thought I found her, it was just an imitation of the real thing. Fate loves her karma. But it doesn't matter; tonight it ends," he said without any bitterness in his voice; just acceptance.

My attention, at first, was on the first part of his words. Fair? Did that mean he thought it was just and the right punishment for his crimes?

Naruto started walking toward me; that action snapped me out of my thoughts and into reality. It also forced his last words into my mind and made themselves known.

_But it doesn't matter, tonight it ends._

What was the exact punishment they gave him? What was the way out?

For when demons punished someone, they always gave the punished a way out. Every time it was something that would be almost impossible.

An example would be a guy who hated to kill, and pissed off a demon because he didn't kill someone or something. The man could be freed only if he killed someone.

Naruto stopped right in front of me; everything in me screamed that I stop him from moving or doing anything at all.

But those eyes stopped _me_.

"How do you get freed?" I whispered breathlessly. His eyes were making me do (and not want to do) things I would have never done unless I was tricked.

He was Kitsune, after all.

I didn't want to reveal things. I didn't want to want to kiss him. I didn't want to wrap my legs around his waist—to pull him closer to me. I didn't want to succumb to the desire to kiss him.

But I did.

And everything went to hell.

As soon as our lips touched, something inside of him broke.

I jerked back, my body became unbalanced and I fell off the branch.

Again. Irony, something you have just got to love it. This tree was the beginning, now it's the end. The skeleton started everything and it would end it with it. I fell of the branch and he saved me; now I fall again and he can't.

Naruto couldn't move, his eyes went wide and he knew he couldn't catch me, as I dropped six foot into water deeper than I am tall.

My body reacted by itself; and did a back flip so that when I hit the water, my feet would hit it first, instead of my back. And instead of falling into the water and drowning, like he thought, I landed on one knee. My eyes closed and I started my heart; for it had stopped again.

When I opened my eyes and stood up, he stared at me in shock. I smirked; it seemed that tonight I would keep on shocking him.

"How?" he gasped as many questions began to flash through his mind at my actions. Naruto saw me standing on water and I saw doubt, clearly, in his eyes as he realized what I did. The blonde male in front me, began to try and connect the dots.

My eyes immediately turned on him, looking him up and down. Something was happening, his charka wasn't coming out—like it was supposed to—but going in, instead. It went straight into a Seal.

Instantly my eyes turned black and with a wave of my hand the storm disappeared.

He knew who I was now; there was no doubt in his mind now; but regret was filling him up, instead of relief.

That meant he broke the curse that was placed on him by the Nine Bjuu Lords and my sister.

_Damn it all!_

As soon as the Water went away, I was by his side in a split second.

"Ella?"

I nodded and pulled up his shirt. There was the Seal that the curse was coming from. It seemed that Kyuubi had merged completely with him long ago and no longer needed a Seal to bind him inside of Naruto.

"I thought it wasn't you…that's why I did it." He confessed as I studied the Seal more.

Later I would kill him, but now I had to save my beloved Wind Guardian.

Two minutes gone by—almost there.

Three minutes over with—I knew it was designed to respond to my charka, but what did that mean? Did that mean that I could end his curse? Or did that mean I could stop it from consuming him, and in two minutes, kill him forever?

Four minutes were through—I wasn't one hundred percent sure, but I gave it a shot. I channeled enough of my demonic charka to, hopefully, stop the Seal from consuming the blonde in front of me.

Five minutes pasted— he wasn't dead. The Seal hadn't taken him, body and soul. He was still here.

But would I be?

I needed demonic charka to live, and I just gave him almost all of mine. I didn't have much left after healing three of my Guardians, and now I gave almost all of what was left to my last one.

I actually had as much demonic charka as my guys now; now that I thought about it. My demonic charka had allowed their souls to travel through time to be re-born, so it took some of it from them. Now we all had the same amount. Naruto had all of the demonic charka—that he got from Kyuubi—absorbed by the Seal. He only had what I just gave him; which kind of wasn't that much.

Speaking of my Guardians, they were coming toward us now. By the time they came up to us, it hadn't taken them long.

I knew as they came closer that everything was going to be alright. My charka would keep us together now; even if we didn't have much of it left. Of course, we could remedy that by going to the demon world.

Our souls and our past, present and future were now bound together. We all knew it; I felt the knowledge occupy their minds and I felt their acceptance.

_Forever and ever,_ they all thought as they surrounded me. Their thoughts caused me to smirk.

"Forever and ever, huh? Can you handle me that long, my loves?"

_Fin_

Thanks guys, for bearing with me this long. I'm sorry that it wasn't complete when it was supposed to be (by Halloween).

Again, MERRY CHRISTMAS guys, and HAPPY NEW YEAR!


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